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Google’s Dirty Money

The internet firm should not have been able to fund research that pleaded its case

Google has been involved in the financing of hundreds of academic articles that defend the company against criticism. Some involved British academics and universities. This should not have happened. The internet search giant has improperly tried to skew the research process and public debate. Through carelessness or avarice, academics have made themselves complicit.

Former employees of Google told The Wall Street Journal that the company’s lobbyists in Washington drew up “wish lists” of academic papers, including titles, abstracts and proposed budgets, and then went hunting for academics willing to meet the brief. One such paper argued that it was fair for Google to collect users’ data in exchange for its free services; another that the company has not taken advantage of its dominance to shepherd…